Challenging behaviour continues to be portrayed by the media, politicians and educationalist as a cause for concerns in UK secondary schools (DfE 2015, NASUWT, 2014). In recent years, there has been a shift in thinking amongst some researchers (Graff, 2009, Pomerantz, 2005) about how to view challenging behaviour in the classroom, recognising its idiographic nature. By drawing upon other disciplines, alongside psychology, social constructionist thinking has emerged as a helpful position from which to view challenging behaviour. From this position, challenging behaviour is socially constructed through language and action in the classroom. This study explored challenging verbal behaviour in the secondary classroom from a social constructionist perspective. A series of observations of three Key Stage 3 pupils and their teachers were completed. These observations were supported by audio-recording and qualitative observation records. To analyse the data, two approaches to Discourse Analysis, namely Conversation Analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis, were used to explore pupil-teacher interaction. This analysis focused on the ways micro and macro features of classroom talk created potential for the construction of challenging verbal behaviour. The institutionally defined asymmetry in pupil-teacher roles impacted upon the range and use of linguistic devices used by teachers and pupils. Teachers used a broader range of sophisticated strategies to maintain their authority control of the discourse. Pupils would then seek to address this asymmetry through talk, sometimes impulsively, leading to the construction of situations related to behaviour. As such, challenging verbal behaviour emerged when there was conflict between the pupil and teacher roles in the interactional space in the classroom. This study has several implications for the practice of Educational Psychologists and teachers. It highlighted the importance of considering the micro-level features of pupil-teacher talk in the classroom, recognising their idiographic nature. Dominant discourses, power and institutional talk can make certain things ‘thinkable’ and ‘sayable’ therefore highlighting the importance of reflexivity and criticality around the language that is used when talking about challenging behaviour. Finally, the potential value of Discourse Analysis and social constructionist thinking in understanding challenging behaviour was also identified as a possible way forward, both for the evidence base and for practice.

Department for Education statistics (DfE, 2016b) report an increase in permanent exclusion rates with exclusion also being associated with feelings of stigmatisation, rejection and shame (Harris, Vincent, Thomson, & Toalster, 2006) crime (Vulliamy & Webb, 2000) and social exclusion (Daniels, 2011). Research relating to inclusion has focused upon excluded boys, who form the vast majority of the official exclusion figures, with girls being overlooked in school prevention strategies and research (Osler, Street, & Lall, 2002). This research aimed to explore the stories told by permanently excluded young females in relation to their school experience. Attributions for prior misbehaviour and exclusion(s) were also explored alongside possible future selves. An adapted version of Hiles and Cermak’s (2008) model of ‘Narrative Oriented Inquiry’ (NOI) was employed. Guided narrative interviews, supported by the use of a visual life path tool, were conducted with 3 female adolescents attending Pupil Referral Units (PRU) within a rural Local Authority. Lieblich, Tuval-Mashiach and Ziber’s (1998) holistic-form and categorical content perspectives were applied to the data collected. Holistic form analysis considered the overall form of the story and was used to consider narrative plot lines whilst categorical content analysis permitted the identification of themes, informed by the research questions. Narrators were found to reflect upon the transition from child-centered primary to perceived impersonal secondary settings whilst also reflecting upon the transition to PRUs. Key themes in relation to attributions emerged including feeling misunderstood and let down by their school settings, a critical period of distress at home and peer related factors such as bullying, conflict and peer pressure. The research also highlighted the potential impact of experiences and attributions upon future selves alongside the potential gender differences in the experience of school and exclusion. The current research informs potential adaptations to education policy and procedures in order to address gender specific social, emotional and mental health difficulties. It is hoped that the research presented promotes further interest into the marginalized group of permanently excluded young females alongside promoting the practical, ethical and epistemological reasons for researching the perspectives of young people.

Exclusion rates for challenging pupil behaviour (CB) are increasing (DfE; SFR-28/2015). Where staff attribute CB to within-child or home-related factors, low perceived self-efficacy, negative attitudes and exclusionary practice amongst staff may increase (Jager & Denessen, 2015). Group problem-solving approaches including Circles of Adults (CoA) aim to facilitate staff attributions. Given their equivocal influence, such approaches require attunement and systematic research (Gulliford, 2015). Based on educational research (Gaudin & Chaliès, 2015), this study explored the impact of video-data within CoA via a mixed method, pre-post-test experimental, cluster randomisation design where staff reviewed video-data (experimental n=20) or, written-data (comparison n=19). Analysis of covariance statistical tests were performed on individual participant data (Attribution & Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaires). Group theories (CoA transcripts) regarding behaviour were analysed via content and statistical analyses; allowing triangulation between qualitative and quantitative data. Participants’ views (Evaluation Questionnaire) were analysed using some statistical analysis and content analysis of narrative comments Findings from individual measures suggest that video-data encouraged staff to think holistically regarding causes of CB. Group data showed that video increased participants’ awareness of school factors whilst providing some insight into child-related factors. An unexpected relative increase in the experimental group’s home-related attributions suggests that CoA processes may have also impacted staff responses and aided holistic formulation, thus the impact of video may be mediated by the accompanying scaffolding and facilitation. Participants in both conditions, particularly in the experimental condition rated the overall CoA, and the added element of data as ‘helpful’. Narrative comments also tenuously suggest that video-data encouraged staff to consider school-factors to a relatively greater degree. Limitations include sample size for group data and reliability of measures. Findings implicate educational and psychological practice, school staff and potentially, pupils. Replication of this study on a larger scale and, use of deductive, qualitative methods will expound current findings.

Emerging research (Cort and Cline, 2017; Dodd, 2009; Gallagher, 2010) suggests the impact of domestic abuse (DA) on children and young people's lives is a crucial issue for Educational Psychologists (EPs). Whilst there are a number of small scale studies exploring EP practice in this area (Gallagher, 2010; Heath, 2015) researchers are yet to explore EP practice in relation to domestic abuse on a larger scale. This research adopted a mixed method web survey design to explore EP practice at a national level. A pragmatic stance was adopted, and descriptive statistics, thematic analysis and factor analysis were utilised to explore EP practice supporting children, families and schools exposed to DA, factors supporting EP engagement in this area and EPs' views around their unique role in relation to DA. The findings suggest EPs encounter DA within their casework to varying degrees. EPs appear to vary in their consideration of DA within case formulation, and in their exploration of DA with school staff and families. Respondents varied in their approach to exploration of DA and the indicators they utilise to prompt exploration. Factor Analysis identified EPs' confidence in introducing DA to the conversation, whilst also ensuring a co-operative relationship exists with parents, is an important factor for EP practice. EPs reported the use of a range of interventions in response to DA; however interventions specifically focused upon DA were not widely used. EPs identified an interest in further involvement with a range of interventions and 23% of respondents reported involvement in systemic approaches around DA. Further factors perceived to be important by EPs in supporting their work in this area were: supervision and training to support EP knowledge and skills, service level policy, and the establishment of a clear role for EPs around DA. The majority of respondents felt there could be a unique role for the EP around DA, with the EPs' facilitative role and their ability to further the psychological understanding of others identified as key themes.

Rates of school exclusion continue to show annual increase in England (DfE, 2016; DfE, 2017a). Increasingly, there is an impetus to adopt a focus on 'what works' to promote educational success for students who experience, or who are 'at risk' of school exclusion (e.g. Hart, 2013). The importance of organisational intervention in the prevention of school exclusion is well-cited (e.g. Hallam & Castle, 2001) and gaining the views of students is seen as an essential component of this process (e.g. Cole, 2015). The current study used Appreciative Inquiry (AI) within qualitative, case study methodology to explore how facilitative factors within an internal alternative provision unit in an East Midlands secondary school enables educational success for students who had experienced fixed-term exclusion, according to the views of groups of students, staff and parents. Thematic Analysis (TA) (Braun & Clarke, 2006) suggested that positive teacher-student relationships was perceived as the most prolific enabling factor cited by students, reflecting previous research (e.g. Michael & Frederickson, 2013). The importance of regular, respectful and balanced home-school communication and of supportive peer relationships was also noted by all participants. A nurture-based, non-judgemental ethos, underpinned by high expectations and equality, which seeks to empower students and prepare them for life was reported as facilitative. Participant groups concurred on factors that facilitated a conducive learning environment, including. systems underpinned by consistent boundaries, small class groups. A curriculum perceived by students as relevant, meaningful and practical, as well as engaging, accessible, well-differentiated lessons with high levels of learning support, was reported by all participant groups reported as essential to students' educational engagement. Students articulated their sense of safety, belonging, autonomy and competence within these educational experiences as facilitating their engagement, positive behaviour change and intrinsic motivation to succeed at school. The AI process appeared to enable the surfacing of elements of best practice within the research setting, the elicitation of participants' visions to develop these and the generation of an action plan through which several of these ideas were realised. However, macro-systemic factors at a national level were described as current barriers to provision development for these students. Positive actions that can be taken by schools, local and national policy-makers and EPs to address the issue of school exclusion are discussed within this paper. It is hoped that these outcomes can contribute to a growing knowledge base of 'what works' for students deemed 'at risk' of school exclusion to punctuate the cycles of exclusion currently perpetuated within the education system.

The research presented here is an exploratory investigation of the attitudes of key decision-makers towards the placement of young people with social, emotional, mental health difficulties (SEMH) in alternative provisions. These attitudes were explored in the context of the participants' definitions of and attitudes towards inclusion alongside further exploration of factors which both help and hinder the inclusion of young people who attend these settings. Literature surrounding inclusion, exclusion, alternative provisions and teacher attitudes towards young people with SEMH informed the development of the study, alongside literature concern the theory of attitudes. The researcher sets the research within a social constructionist and pragmatic epistemological paradigm, utilising a qualitative methodology. Four school leadership team members, four alternative provision leads and four educational psychologists took part in semi-structured interviews based around a vignette developed in a focus group formed of participants from each of these groups. This vignette describes a fictional young person called Bert intended to be representative of young people placed in alternative provisions and discussion throughout the interviews referred back to Bert. An inductive thematic analysis using Braun & Clarke's (2006) method was used to analyse the interview transcripts, with the research questions kept in mind throughout. This analysis presents codes, themes and subthemes in five thematic maps from which six key findings are drawn regarding the attitudes of the participants towards inclusion, alternative provision placement and the factors helping and hindering the successful inclusion of Bert. These key finds are: 1. There is a tension between the theory and practice of inclusion when considering the use of alternative provision. 2. Mainstream schools experience a variety of systemic and individual challenges and feel deskilled in supporting young people with SEMH. 3. The challenges in schools have led to the sense that Alternative Provision can do things which the mainstream cannot despite concerns around funding and quality assurance. 4. Taking ownership of young people and placing them at the centre of decisions around their provision is essential, although at times these decisions are made to meet school needs rather than young peoples'. 5. Educational Psychologists have a role in supporting the inclusion of young people like Bert and their educators. 6. Children and young people are perceived to have an impact on their own inclusion. The implications of these findings for professional practice for school staff and educational psychologists as well as government policy are discussed and suggestions for further research are presented. Finally, the research provides some reflections following the research process.

It is well-established that student engagement is a prerequisite and proxy for learning and development. Yet, despite its significance, student engagement has not received proper attention as an important construct in the literature of second/foreign language research, especially in research on listening skill. The current research contributes to the understanding of the phenomenon of student engagement in out-of-class L2 listening. The research was conducted at a university in Viet Nam and targeted at second-year and third-year majors of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). To attain the aims of gaining insight into student engagement in listening beyond classroom and innovating a design for enhancing student engagement, two studies were undertaken. The first or baseline study examined the status quo of student engagement within these learners’ usual self-study setting. Meanwhile, the main study examined student engagement in the project’s social networked or YouListen listening space. The research was a mixed methods case study, mobilizing survey questionnaires, a record of the learners’ online activity and semi-structured interviews. The results from the baseline study reveal a worrying status quo of student engagement in terms of time and effort investment, listening strategy use, readiness, confidence and willingness to listen to the target language beyond classroom. Besides, the learning condition and factors relating to the learners themselves were perceived to affect their engagement the most. Furthermore, several significant correlations between certain behaviours of engagement were statistically identified. Last, sharing experiences with peers, asynchronous communication, test-oriented resources and real life-oriented resources gained the learner’s strong favour. The findings of the main study depict a diverse picture of student engagement in which variation in engagement was associated with different learners and different listening or sharing sub-spaces and within individual learners. In general, there were noticeable positive signs of engagement, such as being engaged with particular listening resources, the expression of positive emotions, and actively sharing listening comprehension and reflection, all of which seemed to suggest the potential of the project’s listening space to engage learners to listen actively to English. Nevertheless, the prevalence of inflexible listening strategies and ‘quiet’ knowledge construction were identified. It was found that there was interplay of certain contextual and learner factors that might have contributed to the ways students engaged. Suggestions that might further promote student engagement were drawn and involved improvements in both the design and the learner. Based on the obtained research findings, pedagogical implications are recommended. The findings and recommendations will be of interest to EFL teachers, researchers, and policy makers.

Hand-held technology is increasingly being used in educational settings as a medium of instruction for young children (Hubber et al., 2016). Although the evidence base is developing, little is currently known about the effectiveness of mathematics interventions delivered through tablet technology, particularly for preschool children in the UK. The present research evaluates the impact of the onebillion tablet-based intervention on the mathematics attainment, receptive language and positive 'approaches to learning' of 3-4 year old children. An embedded mixed methods design was used in this study. The primary aims of the research were addressed through a quasi-experimental, ability-matched design. Across two nurseries, forty-seven children were allocated to either an experimental group, who accessed the intervention for fifteen minutes per day over 9 weeks (n = 23), or a control group (n = 24). Additional nested data was collected, including qualitative semi-structured facilitator interviews and observations, to further illuminate factors affecting outcomes. At post-test, the experimental group had significantly higher mathematics attainment than the control group (controlling for pre-test ability), assessed on a researcher-developed measure of curriculum knowledge. At 5 month follow-up, the experimental group still appeared to outperform children in the control group, but differences between groups were no longer statistically significant. There was no significant intervention effect on a standardised measure of mathematics, or other aspects of development, including children's receptive language or 'approaches to learning'. Based upon analysis of embedded data, a model is proposed of the potential mechanisms underpinning the efficacy of the intervention, accounting for individual differences and implementation factors on outcomes. Findings from this study are discussed in relation to relevant literature and theory. Methodological limitations of the study are also acknowledged, as well as the implications of these findings for the use of educational technology in the early years, the practice of educational psychologists and further research.

Recent governmental policies in the UK have been focusing on the promotion of mental health in children and young people and mental health provision in school has now become a government priority (DfE, 2016; DH, 2014). In these government initiatives, the role of educational psychologists (EPs) as external professionals that can support students’ mental health has been frequently underrepresented and relatively limited to the delivery of therapeutic interventions (AEP, 2017). Existing research in mental health in educational psychology appears to focus on evaluations of therapeutic interventions. This study aims to extend the educational psychology evidence base and explain EPs’ successful mental health casework. It aims to inform future educational psychology practice and improve mental health outcomes for children and young people. The current study is qualitative and adopts a constructivist epistemology with elements of the transformative paradigm. The study uses a constructivist grounded theory methodology (Charmaz, 2014) and data was gathered through semi-structured interviewing with five educational psychologist participants of a single local authority. Data gathering and analysis followed the steps suggested by Charmaz (2014). The outcomes of the data analysis were theoretically sensitised based on literature from attachment theory in psychotherapy, person-centred counselling, self-determination theory, solution-focused approaches and consultation. The constructed grounded theory focuses on EPs’ direct work with school staff and parents and suggests that EPs use two sets of interacting processes in their work with adults. One relates to adults’ engagement in cognitively demanding problem solving activities that aim to enable them to support the needs of the child by challenging their perceptions, teaching them new skills and leading them to cognitive and behavioural change. The other set of processes aims at the development of a secure attachment base within the involvement that offers emotional support and comfort when the adults feel overwhelmed by the challenging processes involved. The grounded theory suggests a theoretical framework for educational psychology practice and implications for professional practice and future policy are discussed alongside limitations and suggestions for future research.

This study aimed to contribute to the small evidence base on the Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA) project. The ELSA project is an Educational Psychologist led training programme for Teaching Assistants’ (TA) providing modular input combining background psychological theory with practical guidance to meet the emotional needs of pupils in the context of a school (Burton, 2008). Existing research (Burton, Osborne and Norgate, 2010) has demonstrated that the ELSA project has a significant impact on teaching assistants’ perceptions of pupil emotional literacy and behavioural adjustment. However, current evaluations are unable to demonstrate if these impacts are recognised by the pupils themselves. This research aimed to explore the perceptions of recently trained ELSAs regarding their role and training in supporting the development of emotional well-being. The study was also interested in exploring whether there the ELSA project has a measurable impact on pupils’ emotional well-being. A pragmatic, mixed methods design is discussed, first in terms of a pre-test – post-test non-equivalent groups design, quantitative method that included 5 TA and 5 pupil experimental group participants and 1 TA and 5 pupil comparison group participants. The Emotional Literacy Checklist (Faupel, 2003) and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman, 1997) measured pre and post-test changes in teacher and pupil participant scores. Secondly qualitative methods included thematic analyses of focus group and questionnaire data gathered at different time points from the recently trained ELSAs. It was not possible to determine whether the ELSA project had an impact on pupils’ emotional well-being. However, thematic analyses suggested that participants perceived the ELSA training to be of value in terms of their personal and professional development and the support gained. There was also evidence to suggest that participants shared a perception that the perceptions of their colleagues regarding their role and time restraints were a primary challenge to their role. Professional implications of these findings and future research, in light of methodological limitations, are discussed.